Pumpkin Cake

I’ve been dreaming about this pumpkin shaped cake recipe ever since I first noticed it in my favorite episode of Gilmore Girls, “A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving.” At the end of the episode, Lorelai and Rory return to Sookie’s house to find her happily drunk after Jackson and his family have deep fried the turkey, along with many other items such as “vegetables, mashed potatoes, butter, pickles, salt, a napkin.” Lorelai then asks what happened to the yard, at which point the camera zooms in on the burnt grass and the deep fryer as Sookie explains that the lawn caught on fire. At that moment, you can see a beautiful pumpkin shaped cake. Ever since I saw it, I knew I had to make it one day.

You too can make this pumpkin cake for your Thanksgiving gathering with this recipe. It is essentially two pumpkin bundt cakes on top of each other with lots of orange frosting. In addition to two bundt pans, you will also need a muffin pan to bake two muffins that will be inserted into the middle of the cake. 

How to make a pumpkin shaped cake with bundt pans

You can make both of the bundts at the same time, or one at a time, depending on what your equipment can handle. My standard KitchenAid mixer couldn’t hold the batter for both at once, so I opted to make them one at a time. However, I’ve broken down the ingredients both ways:

For one bundt

• ½ cup (1 stick) of salted butter, softened
• 1 ½ cups of granulated sugar
• 1 can of pumpkin puree
• 3 large eggs
• 2 ½ cups of all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp of baking powder
• 2 Tbsp of pumpkin pie spice
• ½ tsp of salt

For two bundts

• 1 cup (2 sticks) of salted butter, softened
• 3 cups of granulated sugar
• 2 cans of pumpkin puree
• 6 large eggs
• 5 cups of all-purpose flour
• 4 tsp of baking powder
• 4 Tbsp of pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp of salt

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees and greasing two bundt pans and two slots in a muffin pan. Set aside.

In your KitchenAid mixer, beat the softened butter (you can pop it in the microwave for about 20 seconds to get it the right consistency) and sugar on medium speed until incorporated. Next, add the pumpkin puree and eggs, beating on slow speed to start and working up to high.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Add to the wet ingredients and work up to high speed until everything is combined.

Using a teaspoon or a cookie scooper, fill the two muffin pan slots with batter. Then, pour the remaining batter into the two bundt pans. Be sure that each pan gets an equal amount. Use a rubber spatula to smooth out the top.

Bake the bundts for about 35-40 minutes and the muffins for about 18-21 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes up clean. Let cool for about 15 minutes.

Then, carefully use the back-edge of a butter knife to gently loosen the edges of both bundts. Next, flip one of the bundt pans onto a clean countertop. If the bundt does not release from the pan right away, try lightly shaking it. If it still does not want to budge, drape a washcloth that has been run under hot water over the upside down pan. Let sit for about 5 minutes or until the washcloth has cooled. Wipe off any puddles from the countertop, and then gently pick up the pan and shake the cake out of it. It should let loose.

Once both cakes are out of the bundt pans, place them on a cooling rack and let them cool completely before continuing on with the recipe. At this point, you can also remove the two muffins from the pan and let them cool on the rack as well. When the bundts are no longer warm, carefully pick one of them up and face it decorative side down on the plate you wish to serve the cake on. Next, place one of the muffins right side up into the middle of the bundt.

Next, it’s time to make the frosting.

How to frost a pumpkin shaped cake

For this frosting, you will need the following ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups (3 sticks) of salted butter, softened
• 4 ½ cups of powdered sugar
• 3 Tbsp of heavy cream
• 2 tsp of pumpkin pie extract
• ½ tsp of salt
• Red food dye
• Yellow food dye
• Green cake icing
• Cinnamon stick

In your KitchenAid mixer, beat the butter. Then, add in the powdered sugar and start off mixing on slow speed. Next, add the heavy cream, pumpkin pie extract, and salt. Once all ingredients are fully incorporated, you can begin adding the food dye. I used the classic gel food coloring from Betty Crocker. There’s not an exact science to the color, it’s more about eyeballing it. There should be about 3x more yellow than red dye added to create a nice orange color. Keep adding the dye and beating on high speed until you create a hue that you are satisfied with.

Admittedly, actually frosting this cake is probably the most difficult part of this recipe. First, you will want to frost the first bundt cake—the one that is already on your serving plate. Put a thin layer of frosting on top of it to create a base by which the second bundt cake can stick to it. Next, place the second bundt right side up on top of this layer of frosting. Then, place the second muffin right side up into the middle of the second bundt.

Frosting the cake in its entirety will definitely take patience and creativity. Using an icing spatula, start by frosting the top, including the muffin, then work your way down to the middle and bottom. I like to alternate between using a large icing spatula and a smaller offset one. With just one layer of frosting on, you will find that the cake can still be seen. Apply a second and third layer of frosting, laying it on thick to fully cover the cake. As you get towards the end of applying the frosting, smooth it out by running the spatula in a circular motion around the cake as you spin the cake pedestal or plate.

Once complete, insert a cinnamon stick into the center of the muffin to create a stem for the pumpkin. Then, use the green icing to draw leaves on the top.

Serve and enjoy this pumpkin shaped cake Sookie St. James style for Thanksgiving dessert!

If you like this recipe, be sure to pin it!